The structure held. The ground gave way.

GR-001

arch dam

Malpasset Dam — the Undetected Fault That Failed an Arch Dam and Killed 423

foundation-fault-slip-abutment-rock-wedge-upliftconcrete-arch-dam1950s

2 December 1959, 21:13 CET · Failed

GR-002 · 1928

concrete gravity dam

St. Francis Dam — the Foundation Mulholland Trusted, and the 1928 Flood That Ended Him

foundation-failure-defective-abutment-rock-paleo-landslide-reactivation-upliftconcrete-gravity-dam1920s

12 March 1928, ~23:57 PST · Failed

GR-003

arch dam

Vajont Dam — the Dam Survived, the Mountain Didn’t: a Slide That Killed ~2,000

reservoir-rim-landslide-reactivated-slide-plane-drawdown-filling-drivenconcrete-arch-dam-reservoir-slope1960s

9 October 1963, 22:39 CET · Slid

GR-004

earthfill dam

Teton Dam — Piping Through the Core on First Fill, Gone in Hours

internal-erosion-piping-hydraulic-fracture-of-erodible-core-through-jointed-rockearthfill-embankment-dam1970s

5 June 1976, ~11:57 MDT · Failed

GR-005

earthfill embankment

Banqiao Dam — the Spillway That Was Too Small, and a Cascade That Killed Thousands

overtopping-of-under-designed-embankment-spillway-under-capacityearthfill-embankment-dam1970s

8 August 1975, ~01:00 CST · Breached

GR-006

flowslide

Aberfan — a Coal-Tip Flowslide That Buried a School and Killed 116 Children

static-liquefaction-flowslide-of-saturated-spoilmine-waste-spoil-tip1960s

21 October 1966, ~09:15 GMT · Slid

GR-007

earthfill embankment

South Fork Dam — the Johnstown Flood: a Plugged Dam Overtopped and Killed 2,209

overtopping-erosion-of-under-maintained-embankment-lost-freeboard-blocked-spillwayearthfill-embankment-dam1880s

31 May 1889, ~15:10 EST · Breached

GR-008

tailings dam

Brumadinho — a Tailings Dam That Liquefied in Seconds and Killed 270

static-liquefaction-flow-failure-of-saturated-tailingsupstream-raised-tailings-dam2010s

25 January 2019, 12:28 BRST · Failed

GR-009

upstream-raised tailings dam

Fundão (Mariana) — the Flow-Liquefaction Breach That Poisoned 668 km of River

flow-liquefaction-of-saturated-tailings-sand-construction-defect-chain-minor-seismic-triggerupstream-raised-tailings-dam2010s

5 November 2015, ~16:00 BRT · Breached

GR-010

tailings dam

Mount Polley — a Buried Glacial Clay Layer the Designers Never Found

foundation-shear-failure-undrained-failure-of-undetected-glaciolacustrine-layertailings-dam-perimeter-embankment2010s

4 August 2014, ~00:00 PDT · Breached

GR-011

embankment dam

Lower San Fernando Dam — the Earthquake That Liquefied a Dam Above 80,000 People

seismic-cyclic-liquefaction-flow-slide-of-hydraulic-fill-shellearthfill-hydraulic-fill-embankment-dam1970s

9 February 1971, ~06:00 PST · Slid

GR-012

bearing-capacity failure

Transcona Grain Elevator — a Million Bushels That Sheared the Clay and Tipped 27 Degrees

bearing-capacity-general-shear-failure-of-soft-clayshallow-raft-foundation-grain-elevator1910s

18 October 1913 · Slid

GR-013 · 2004

deep excavation

Nicoll Highway — an Under-Designed Deep Excavation and a 2004 Collapse That Killed 4

deep-excavation-retaining-system-failure-soft-clay-earth-pressure-under-designed-struts-wallbraced-excavation-retaining-wall-system2000s

20 April 2004, ~15:30 SGT · Collapsed

GR-014 · 1963

lined earthfill reservoir

Baldwin Hills Reservoir — Built Over an Active Fault and Oilfield Subsidence, Breached in 1963

foundation-fault-offset-subsidence-induced-lining-rupture-and-pipinglined-earth-embankment-reservoir1960s

14 December 1963, ~15:38 PST · Breached

GR-015

spillway failure

Oroville Dam Spillways — Slab Uplift Over Weathered Rock Forced 188,000 to Flee

spillway-slab-uplift-erosion-of-weathered-foundation-rockconcrete-spillway-chute-on-rock-foundation2010s

7 February 2017 · Failed